Subscribe to this blog

Get our latest updates via email

Search This Blog

#FinisherFriday (5/10/19): The Crucifix Powerbomb

Welcome to another edition of #FinisherFriday! This is Wreddit_Regal giving a shoutout to one of pro wrestling's "for big guys only" finishers.

It can be said that pro wrestling is a big man's game. No matter how you look at it, competitors blessed with bigger physiques and taller heights already have the advantage over their puny or average-sized opponents. Although in modern times, most have compensated for their lack of size with speed, agility and sheer tenacity. It cannot be denied that size matters in wrestling. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Aside from the obvious strength and reach advantage, the hosses have the distinct ability to perform certain finishers that require the elevation and functional strength that their miniature counterparts simply do not have. One of these finishers is the notorious crucifix powerbomb.

If you consider yourself a suplex connoisseur, it is almost certain that the crucifix powerbomb wouldn't even get into your top ten based on aesthetics. Everything from the slow flip to the awkward cross position to the throw just screams clumsy and tasteless, but the big guys change those adjectives into brutal and classy.

Although there are many good contenders for the title of best crucifix powerbomb, I have chosen these three examples because of the contrasting ways they perform the move:

1. The Razor's Edge

The crucifix powerbomb that everyone knows. Scott Hall actually did a good job of making this one of the most-protected finishers of his era, which added more to its credibility as a potent match-ender.

3. The Border Toss

My personal favourite. Being cockier than Razor Ramon while performing the move, and the way he tosses the opponent like Michael van Gerwen lobbing the darts trying to get a triple-19 on the board, immediately puts this version on the list, despite it being noticeably weaker than the two above.

Short analysis:Elevation - 7/10Downward throw - 7/10Swag - 11/10

"But what makes the crucifix powerbomb special from your standard powerbomb?" you might ask. The answer is right there in the move's mechanics:

Holding the opponent in the armpits/triceps area forces the attacker to propel the opponent's body diagonally, instead of the back being perpendicular to the mat. This means that either the head, neck, and upper back could land first.

Unlike the standard powerbomb, which typically has the damage spread out evenly throughout the back because it lands perpendicular to the floor, when a person lands using a body part that has a small surface area, all damage is dealt to that specific area, without the chance for force distribution. This could easily give the receiving wrestler a plethora of injuries ranging from fractured skulls to broken cervical vertebrae to fractured scapulae to a collapsed lung due to blunt trauma.

And there you have it chaps, the crucifix powerbomb analyzed! What finisher would you like to be deconstructed on next week's article? Let us know in the comment section below!